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Industry Clusters

The ALIGN-CCUS project has been designed to support the timely delivery of CCUS in six of Europe’s industrialised regions. The combined results will be used to create blueprints for developing low-emission industry clusters, through CO2 geological storage and CO2 utilisation. The project will also assess commercial models for CO2 cluster developments, including public-private partnerships.

Each industry cluster has identified the research and development needed to deliver full-chain CCUS. The project will provide a portfolio of storage options for each cluster, along with a management plan and advice on securing storage permits and future capacity.

North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

North Rhine-Westphalia is Germany’s most populated state and the focal point of industry and energy production. It is responsible for one third of the country’s CO2 emissions. Three quarters of electricity generation comes from coal and lignite-fired power plants, and the region also has a large number of manufacturing industries, such as iron and steel, cement and chemicals. ALIGN-CCUS will evaluate carbon capture and utilisation as a multi-sector CO2 mitigation option across the region.

Rotterdam, the Netherlands

The Rotterdam Port comprises five large refineries, production plants for hydrogen, industrial gases, and a variety of chemicals, coal and gas-based power generation and waste incineration. The ALIGN-CCUS project will develop plans for a centralised facility for the decarbonisation of natural gas in the Rotterdam port area in combination, with nearby offshore storage for the separated CO2 and increased hydrogen use in power generation and industry. This would replace the use of coal in power plants within the cluster.

Grenland, Norway

A number of process industries are located in the Grenland area of south-eastern Norway, including petrochemicals, ferro-manganese, cement and fertilisers. Norcem’s cement plant and Yara’s ammonia plant are the two largest CO2 sources in the region. EGE’s waste incineration plant is also located nearby, in Oslo. A recent study has already identified the Grenland cluster of these three sources as being ideal for the development of a multi-user CO2 infrastructure, which would be both economically and operationally efficient. ALIGN-CCUS will draw up engineering plans for an CO2 surface storage facility for handling CO2 from multiple sources.

Oltenia in Romania

The Oltenia industrial cluster in south-western Romania comprises mainly power generation, aluminium production and a soda production facility. Energy production in this region uses local lignite and provides nearly a quarter of the country’s electricity production. The blueprint for the region, developed by ALIGN-CCUS, will identify the most feasible CO2 transport routes for future captured CO2 and will investigate storage options, including the possibility of using the CO2 for enhanced hydrocarbon recovery in the region.

Grangemouth, United Kingdom

The Grangemouth industrial cluster is focused around the Ineos refinery complex, which annually produces around two million tonnes of chemical products and is Scotland's sole crude oil refinery. The cluster includes the proposed site of Summit Power’s Caledonia Clean Energy Project, which has recently completed an interim engineering and design assessment and identified transport and storage options. ALIGN-CCUS will identify opportunities for cost reductions through shared infrastructure and optimised transport and storage plans.

Teesside, United Kingdom

The Tees Valley in north-east England is one of the UK’s largest and most densely clustered sites of manufacturing industries. Over half of the UK’s hydrogen is currently produced at Teesside. Further production of “clean hydrogen”, by using CCS in the process, is part of the collective plan at Teesside. ALIGN-CCUS will build on the business case already published for the area and seek to identify opportunities for cost reductions through shared transport and storage infrastructure.